Assignment # 9: Due January 14, 2011

Good Afternoon, and welcome back!

I hope everyone had a fantastic holiday. I certainly did! Once again, I was spoiled by my family and friends (including Santa) and I did a little spoiling of my own. But now that the holidays are over and we're back to school, I thought it would be a good idea to take a little time to think about other people. As many of you know, there are thousands and thousands of people in the world who are not nearly as fortunate as we are here in Canada. There are thousands of children who didn't receive a Christmas present, thousands of parents who couldn't afford to provide their families with delicious turkey dinners, and millions of people who didn't get to spend their mornings sleeping in in a warm, cushy bed. For these people, life is a lot more difficult, and I think it's important to remember them, especially at this time of year.


We've all heard the song "If I had 1,000,000 Dollars" by the Barenaked Ladies, but I'll include it below for your entertainment.

In this song, the Barenaked Ladies talk about all the different things they'd do with a million dollars. They could buy a house and furniture to put in it. They would by a fur coat, an exotic pet, a green dress, and a monkey. They'd even take a limousine to get to the store. In our society, a million dollars can go a really long way.


On the other hand, in some countries, it doesn't take a million dollars to make a difference. In some countries, even one hundred dollars can go a really long way.

Step 1:  For this assignment, you will be researching the following organizations:


Oxfam


The Salvation Army


Plan Canada


World Vision


You will need to learn a little bit about each organization. What do they stand for? What do they do with donations? What kinds of donations are available?

Step Two: You will also learn about Ethical Gifts. What are they? How does Ethical Gift giving work? What ethical gift options are available from each organization? You will need to fill out your Ethical Gift Tracking form that you will receive in class. You must record the number of gift options available at each organization, as well as the least and most expensive items. Once you've done this, you will use the remaining space to record the potential gifts that you're interested in, their cost, and their purpose. This form must be completed and handed in to Ms. Crosbie by January 14.

Step Three: Once you've done your research and learned all about these organizations and the gifts they offer, you will have to make a decision. You've been given $100 to spend on ethical gifts. You must decide which organization you will purchase your gifts from, and what gifts you will purchase.

Step 4: You will then create a new blog post under the heading "Assignment #9: If I had $100." In this blog post, you will :

a) Identify which organization(s) you've chosen for your purchase (don't forget to explain why you chose that specific organization)
b) Which gifts you will purchase (don't forget to explain the purpose of these gifts and why you chose them)
c) How you will distribute your funds (i.e. will you spend $100 buying a whole whack of mosquito nets? Or, will you spend $20 on mosquito nets, $50 on a goat, and $30 on medical supplies?)

Step 5: After you've published your post, don't forget to come back to THIS post and leave a comment to let me know you've finished! I can't wait to see what some of you choose to do with your money!

Note: As discussed in class today (January 4), you may combine your funds with those of another person if you both wish to purchase an item that is over $100. You may also spend your money at more than one organization.